Chapter 34
Harry woke to find himself in his new bed in his new bedroom at the house that he had just moved into with Blaise. He was so comfortable that he didn’t want to move. The pillows were soft and fluffy and the blankets were keeping him at the perfect level of warmth. There was a gentle sunlight coming through their sliding door to the balcony.
“Hello love,” Blaise said from where he sat in a chair next to the bed. Harry looked him over and noticed that he looked tired, and concerned. Harry tried to remember why.
“Hi,” he said, but it was barely a whisper. His throat was dry and hoarse. Without having been asked, Blaise reached forward to get him the cup of water that was on the nightstand. Harry shifted and groaned as his body woke up to tell him he was very sore.
Blaise helped him drink as Harry’s hands began to shake a little bit.
“How are you feeling?” Blaise asked when he set the cup back down.
“Sore,” Harry answered honestly, “What happened?”
“What do you remember?” Blaise asked, “You were kind of out of it at the end there.”
“I remember fighting with the Death Eaters,” Harry said, “And Dumbledore. And then there were a lot of people. I’m not sure what happened after that.”
Blaise nodded, “After you knocked out Dumbledore, people swarmed you a bit. Kingsley told them to back off and then you basically passed out. Scared me half to death.”
“Sorry,” Harry said, “I didn’t kill Dumbledore though right?”
“No, beat him up pretty badly though,” Blaise answered, “He did the same to you. But you came out on top.”
“I wasn’t like… gonna die or anything right?” Harry asked.
“No, if the healers hadn’t been there then maybe, it was just a moment when we weren’t sure what was wrong or how bad it was. It was bad, but you had some time before your life would have been in danger,” Blaise said tightly, “You were losing a lot of blood and you were magically exhausted. You have a concussion, slight internal bleeding, and several broken bones and strains. You also got an infection in your lungs because of the water that we were swimming in.”
Harry shuddered, “That was horrible.”
“You did well though,” Blaise told him.
“I flipped out,” Harry said flatly in disagreement. His heart started pounding at just the thought of it, and he fought to keep his breath even. Blaise took his hand and rubbed it soothingly like he knew exactly what Harry was thinking.
“It’s alright sweetheart. There was an explosion you weren’t expecting, and you found yourself almost drowning and you’re terrified of water,” Blaise said, “I think any reaction would be valid there. But you pulled it together and got us out of there.”
“I wouldn’t have been able to without you,” Harry told him, “I’m sorry for dragging you into all of that.”
“Where you go I go,” Blaise said, squeezing his hand, “I just wish I could have helped you more.”
“You helped me so much, kept me focussed, and at the end, I was just trying to find you, so you probably kept me conscious for longer than I would’ve been able to do on my own,” Harry said. Blaise smiled softly. Harry shifted as the pains grew in his body. “So what’s happening now? Did they heal me?”
“They did as much as they could, but I’m sure you know with magical exhaustion their options get more limited,” Blaise explained, “The healing process will be slow until your magic heals. It’s two days. The healers came to check on you this morning.”
“Two days?” Harry repeated.
“Yes, you needed it though,” Blaise said, “The bones are all healed, as well as the sprains, but they’re all going to be sore and fragile for the next few days. You still have a slight gash on your side and large bruising on your back. That should heal too, but you shouldn’t move around too much. Your lungs aren’t healed, but you can’t move too much anyways so you really won’t notice any difference. It will heal on its own with a few days of rest. Your concussion is going to take the longest unfortunately.”
“They always do,” Harry sighed. Anytime he’d had a concussion he’d had headaches for weeks and spells of dizziness. With his last one, there had been confusion as well. Each one got worse.
“Yeah, well, let’s try to make this your last one,” Blaise said, “The healers are worried about brain damage if you have any more.”
“I’m done fighting,” Harry promised, “Did we get all of the Death Eaters?”
“Yes,” Blaise answered, “You’ll be getting another award once you’re better.”
“Great,” Harry said dryly, “Just what I wanted.”
Blaise laughed, “It won’t be for a while so don’t worry about it. Are you hungry?”
Harry thought about it, “No, I’m just tired.”
He knew it was dumb because he’d been sleeping for two days but he was already exhausted from just his conversation with Blaise.
“Sleep then, the healers said to let you sleep as much as you want,” Blaise said.
“Can you come here?” Harry asked quietly. He didn’t want Blaise sitting in the chair next to him. He wanted to sleep with him, “You look tired too.”
Blaise stood and slid into bed with him, “I’ve been worried.”
“Don’t worry anymore,” Harry said as Blaise carefully cuddled up to him. Harry’s head found its familiar place on his chest just below his neck. His eyes drooped closed.
“Okay love,” Blaise said. The pair drifted off to sleep together, safe in each other’s arms.
The next time Harry woke, he was nestled in Blaise’s arms, though Blaise was sitting upright, reading a book with his free hand.
“Welcome back sleepy head,” Blaise said fondly, and stroked Harry’s hair when he saw that he was awake. He put down his book.
“What time is it?” Harry asked groggily. It felt like he had slept for a long time, but the sun was still out.
“Oh about the same time as when we fell asleep yesterday,” Blaise said with a smile.
“A whole day?” Harry asked.
“It’s okay, you do have a visitor though,” Blaise said, “Remus is downstairs.”
“Remus is here?” Harry asked, a bit slow, “Why?”
“He wants to check on you,” Blaise said.
“Oh,” Harry said. It was still new to him, having people that cared to check up on him.
"Should I go downstairs?"
"I think you probably shouldn't move for a little bit longer," Blaise said, "I can go get him though?"
"Sure," Harry nodded, and tried to push himself up to at least be upright. He struggled a little bit but Blaise helped him. Harry felt winded from that small effort. Blaise checked on him once more and then went to get Remus.
"Harry, good to see you," Remus said with a warm smile when he came in, "How are you feeling?"
"Hi, I'm alright, haven't really done too much," Harry said. Remus sat down in the chair that Blaise had been using. Blaise stayed out of the room to give them some privacy.
"Well, you deserve your rest," Remus said, "I've seen the reports and the pictures."
"I haven't," Harry admitted, "I've just been sleeping, what are they saying?"
"Basically hailing you as a hero again," Remus said, "The accounts of what you did are impressive. They're saying you single-handedly took down the Death Eaters, a large wall of Fiendfyre, and Dumbledore. Though the reviews are mixed on that last part."
"There were tons of aurors and professors there helping me with the Death Eaters," Harry said, "Half of that time I spent having a panic attack in a basement of a shop!"
"What happened?" Remus asked, brow creased in concern. Harry waved his hand.
"I get scared of water sometimes, and an aquarium exploded. So..." he let Remus fill in the blanks.
"Is that because of what they did to you?" Remus asked carefully. Harry nodded.
"I've never really been able to swim, and once they found out that it scared me more... it became their favorite," Harry said. He didn't like the sad look on Remus's face so he continued quickly. "But anyway, what are people saying about Dumbledore?"
"Well, he's in custody right now. The public is shocked that he came after you, a lot of them don't know what to think. The article that came out about you made them suspicious of him, but most of them still supported him. The Ministry has made it public that there are two ongoing investigations," Remus said, "A lot of people are angry about that, but a lot of people are on your side. Regardless, most everyone is willing to give you the benefit of the doubt because of what you've done for them. And, most everyone is extremely concerned about your wellbeing right now."
"Oh, because I collapsed in front of everyone," Harry muttered sourly. He hated when people saw that part of him.
"Yes, and because you haven't made any statements yet," Remus said.
"I've been asleep," Harry complained.
"Yes, well, people are rightfully concerned," Remus said, "You have loads of gifts and letters at your old flat I've heard."
"I'm glad they aren't coming here," Harry said.
"So what's the health report?" Remus asked.
"Few broken bones, lung infection, a big cut in my side, um, a few other things," Harry said, "I honestly don't remember, that might be because of the concussion. I know I'm magically exhausted so that doesn't help the healing."
"How bad is the concussion?" Remus asked, "You've had a lot."
"I know, but it's okay," Harry said, "Anymore after this and they're going to be worried about brain damage apparently. But this one's going to be okay, but it's going to take a long while to heal."
Remus nodded, "Those are nothing to mess around with."
"I know," Harry said, "How's Teddy, Tonks?"
"They're good," Remus said, "Teddy wanted to come, but I didn't think you'd be up for a little kid jumping all over you."
"Yeah, probably not," Harry said, smiling fondly none the less.
There was a knock on the door and Blaise stuck his head in.
"You have more visitors," he said, "Ron and Hermione are here, and he brought his mum, apparently she has soup?"
"That sounds like Molly," Remus chuckled, "I can go or-"
"You can stay, but Blaise, they can come up," Harry said. He didn't want Remus to go. He didn't know where he stood yet with the others, especially Ron. He needed someone he trusted there, the confusion from the headache and the lingering tension from the battle made him doubtful of his own judgement.
"Harry!" Hermione said, rushing into the room, "I'm glad you're okay. When Ron told me what happened I was so worried!"
She looked like she wanted to hug him, but didn't and Harry was grateful. He was quite sore. Harry smiled at her and Ron as they entered first. Then came the woman he hadn't seen in a very long time.
"Harry dear, my goodness, you've grown up," Mrs. Weasley said, bustling into the room holding a large pot. She set it on their dresser, "I've brought you soup, I hope that's okay."
"Thank you Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, warmed by her. She came over to him and sat on the edge of the bed. She took his hand and patted it gently.
"I would give you a hug but I don't want to disturb you," she said, "And call me Molly."
That would be too weird, Harry thought, he would just avoid saying her name.
"Okay," he said.
"I see you and Ronald's ability to get into trouble hasn't lessened since you were kids," she said in a reprimanding way, though it was full of fondness.
"Just like James and Sirius," Remus mused nostalgically.
"It was my job to be there," Ron defended, "It wasn't like we were running into the Forbidden forest for no reason."
"We were following Hagrid's instructions if I remember correctly," Harry said, "We had a reason."
"Yes, we always did," Ron said happily.
"Your reasons were horrible, most of the time," Hermione said, shaking her head.
"As long as you don't go crashing any more of Arthur's flying cars," Molly teased, a humorous twinkle in her eyes.
"I can't make any promises," Harry joked. Mrs. Weasley gave a motherly laugh and ruffled his hair. His heart was so full and warm that he thought he might cry. There was so much love in this room, it was almost too much. He held back tears, not wanting to ruin the moment. He looked to Blaise who was standing politely towards the back of their room, smiling softly at the scene.
"How are you feeling dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked once the laughter died down.
"I'm alright," Harry said, "I'm healing."
"Good good, nothing permanent?"
"No I don't think so," Harry said.
"When will you be back on your feet?" Ron asked. Harry didn't know, so he looked at Blaise for an answer.
"It's going to be a slow recovery, probably a month at least before he's back to normal, but it could be longer, that's what the healers said anyway," Blaise said.
"Well, I'll stop by to bring you both food every few days then," Mrs. Weasley decided.
"You don't need to," Harry protested.
"I will dear, I have lots of years to make up for, besides, you could use a little fattening up," She said in her classic way.
They chatted light-heartedly for a bit longer before Remus asked, "Any updates from the Ministry Ron? Hermione?"
The couple looked at each other, before Hermione answered, "My investigation is digging up quite a lot. More than even just related to you Harry. It's going to be a long trial."
"Mine is more clear, we're going to need your statement at some point, but we have enough to send him to Azkaban for a few years already. We're doing that in a few days," Ron added, "So you don't need to worry about him anymore."
"Who's taking over at Hogwarts?" Remus asked.
"Minerva McGonagall," Hemione said, "I called her to let her know this morning. I would be expecting a call to be the Transfiguration teacher Remus. And Harry, they might call you about the Defense post. You are certainly qualified."
Harry raised his eyebrows. He'd never considered teaching before. He couldn't ever fathom going back to Hogwarts while Dumbledore was still there. But now...
"I'll think about it," he decided.
"Moody will do it for at least another year," Remus said, "So you don't need to decide anytime soon."
Harry nodded. His stomach decided to growl loudly at the smell of Molly's soup. Blaise grinned and announced he would go grab a bowl from downstairs. He returned and got Harry a helping of the chicken noodle soup along with some bread.
Remus excused himself, promising to visit again soon and bring Teddy. Ron helped himself to some of his mother's soup as well, earning a reprimand and another fond smile.
Harry ate it eagerly, and it was delicious. He filled up quickly.
"That was great," he told Mrs. Weasley, "Thank you."
"Of course dear, I should be going, I need to start on dinner before Arthur gets home," she said, and stood. She placed a kiss on Harry's forehead and once again he was fighting back tears. "Take care Harry. I'll see you soon."
She left swiftly. Ron had another serving of soup.
"Ronald! That's for Harry," Hermione scolded.
"It's fine," Harry laughed, "I'm full anyway."
"See? He doesn't care," Ron said.
"Were you injured at all?" Harry asked in concern.
"Tore some ligaments in my shoulder, but I'm all patched up now," Ron said with a shrug.
"Good," Harry said. He felt his eyes growing a little bit heavy. His head was also pounding. He wanted to stay awake though, he loved talking to his friends.
"I love your house," Hermione complimented.
"Thanks," Harry said, "The view is great."
"We'll have to have you over to ours sometime," Hermione said, "And then you can meet Rose."
Hermione and Ron looked at each other for a long moment.
"What?" Harry asked.
"We, well, we wanted you to know first," Ron said, "We're expecting."
"Expecting?" Harry's mind was running a bit slow.
"I'm pregnant Harry," Hermione said with a barely contained smile. Harry's mind was empty for a second before it registered.
"Oh wow! That's amazing 'Mione!" he exclaimed, "Congrats!"
"When are you due?" Blaise asked.
"Six months from now," Hermione said, "It's a boy!"
"That's so exciting!" Harry said. He was genuinely so excited for them. He was also so beyond touched that they had come to him first to tell him. It made him hope for a future friendship with them. He knew they still had a lot of catching up to do first, but he felt like they might be able to get back to being close friends again. Especially now that they believed him about Dumbledore.
"Harry?"
Harry blinked. He'd gotten lost in his thoughts.
"Er, sorry, what?" he said, focusing on his friends once more.
"You alright?" Ron asked. Harry nodded.
"Just got lost in thought," Harry said and shrugged.
"The healers thought that might happen a bit with the concussion," Blaise said, walking over and sitting on the end of the bed, facing Harry, "Getting distracted, or having a hard time following a line of thought. Confusion and dizziness. The works."
"Great," Harry said sarcastically.
"We should let you rest," Hermione decided, "We'll come back soon though."
"Okay," Harry said. Hermione gave him a light side hug, and Ron waved before they left. Harry closed his eyes for a second. He was absolutely exhausted from all of the company.
"How are you feeling?" Blaise asked, moving to sit next to him now that they were alone.
"I'm alright," Harry said on reflex.
"Sure you are, now the truth?" Blaise prodded.
"Tired, my head is pounding," Harry admitted.
"Do you think you're up for a bath before you sleep?" Blaise said, "I should change your bandages too."
"Sure," Harry said, though he was apprehensive. He knew Blaise would help him.
Blaise helped Harry sit more upright. Now Harry could feel the gash in his side more clearly. It was aching, but it was bearable. His legs were sore, as were his arms.
When he tried to stand, with Blaise lifting most of his weight, his head spun viciously and he leaned forward dangerously. He swallowed to quell his angry stomach. He gripped Blaise's arms tightly as he squeezed his eyes shut. He wasn't sure if that helped or if it made it worse.
"I've got you," Blaise murmured in his ear as Harry tried to get his bearings. Eventually the dizziness passed. He limped to the bathroom attached to their bedroom, putting most of his weight on Blaise. Blaise gently removed his clothing after turning on some warm water while Harry sat on the closed toilet lid, breathing hard with a slight wheeze. He could feel the lung infection now that he was moving. Harry looked in the mirror.
"I'm a mess," he said with a slight laugh. His torso was wrapped in bandages. His chest and back were bruised badly. His arms and legs were as well, and they had little pink lines everywhere where Harry could they were healing from cuts.
"You look better than you did a few days ago," Blaise said as he tested the water, "It's ready."
Harry looked at the water with trepidation. Blaise helped him over to the tub and then waited patiently for Harry to say he was ready. Harry felt like his heart was beating out of his chest as he looked down at the water. He felt his lungs burning, this time a phantom pain, remembering what it was like to be drowning.
"I don't know," Harry said shakily.
"You don't have to," Blaise said quickly. Harry appreciated it, but he knew that the faster he faced his fears, the faster he'd be able to go back to normal.
"No, I think I can," Harry said, taking a deep, shaky breath, "But can we go slow?"
"We can take as much time as you need," Blaise said supportively, "Do you want me to get in with you?"
Harry considered it and nodded. He held himself up while Blaise quickly got undressed and stepped in.
After a few minutes of gathering his courage, Harry told Blaise he was ready and tentatively lifted his leg up and into the tub. He flinched when the water hit his leg, and he gripped Blaise's hand hard. He breathed through his nose, trying to force himself not to panic. The other leg was easier, but he was hesitant to lower himself down into the water.
"B-Blaise," he said, hearing the panic in his own voice, but unable to stop it.
"I'm here love, you're alright," Blaise soothed, "I'm going to sit down, do you want me to help you?"
Harry nodded, but wanted nothing more than to bolt out of the tub.
Blaise slowly lowered the pair of them. Harry cringed hard, and was as stiff as a board as the water came up around their waists and then chest. Memories of Bellatrix and the explosion in the shop flew through his mind.
"Wonderful love, you're doing so well," Blaise soothed and pulled Harry to lean back against him, between his legs. He rubbed his hands gently up and down Harry's arms. "Deep breath for me now."
Harry took a robotic breath. And then another with Blaise's continued coaxing. Gradually, he relaxed back against Blaise. His fear began to leave him. Blaise started bringing up handfuls of water to wash Harry's hair. He gently rubbed down Harry's body, minding his injuries, but cleaning what he could. By the time he was done, Harry was completely relaxed, laying back on Blaise, eyes closing. The warm water felt nice on his sore body and it soothed his injuries. He was safe in Blaise's arms, and he was tired.
Blaise let him lay there for several minutes. Harry had almost fully drifted to sleep when Blaise decided that he needed to get Harry changed and back in bed. Blaise climbed out of the tub, and propped Harry up so he wouldn't slide under. Harry's eyes stayed closed, and he stayed perfectly calm in the water. Blaise had been so proud when Harry had still tried to get in, even after being so visibly terrified.
"Alright sweetheart," Blaise said, leaning over the tub, "The water's getting cold, it's time to get out."
Harry murmured a response, but it was unintelligible. Blaise smiled softly. He could try to fully wake Harry, but Harry was light, Blaise could probably do everything he needed to without Harry's help. Blaise lifted him out of the tub and wrapped him in a fluffy towel. Blaise sat him back on the closed toilet lid and gently unwrapped the bandages from his torso. Harry opened his bleary eyes for just a moment to look down at the wound. It was still bright red, but it was in the process of healing. It stretched from his right hip, up to the center of his stomach, just under his ribs. Blaise applied a cream and then wrapped him in a new dry bandage. Harry's eyes had fallen closed again.
Blaise carried him out to the bed and laid him down across it over the covers. He looked for some soft clothes. It didn't take him long to put them on Harry and then pick him up and lay him the right way. He tucked him under the covers. He had thought Harry was asleep, but he noticed his eyes open as he went to turn off the lights.
"What is it love?" he asked, turning off the lights and climbing in bed next to Harry. It was still early afternoon, but Blaise was happy to take a nap.
Harry simply grabbed at Blaise's shirt and attempted to pull him close. Harry was so adorable when it he was sleepy and out of it. Blaise complied to his request and took Harry firmly into his arms. He kissed the top of his head.
"I love you," he murmured, knowing that Harry was already asleep.
He followed him within minutes.